The Vermont watchman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1883-1911, 1887-02-02
MOOdy's Perseverance.

There was a terribly wicked man who
kept saloon and whose children | was
very anxious to have come to my Sab
bath-school. So one day called on this
man and said: Mr.. Bell, want you
to let your children come to the Sab
bath-school." He was terribly angry,
said he did not believe in the Bible,
school or anything else, and ordered
me to leave the house. Soon after
went down again and called on this
man, and asked him to go to church,
and again he was very angry. He said
that he had not been at church for
nineteen years, and would never 90
again, and he would rather see his boy
a drunkard and his daughter harlot
than that they should attend the Sab
bath-school. A second time / was
forced to leave the house. Two or
three days after l called again, and he
said "Well, / guess you are pretty
good sort of a man, and different from
the rest of Christians, or you would not
come back" So, seeing him in good
humor, asked him what he had to say
against Christ, and if he had read his
| life? And he asked me what | had to
say against Paine's " Age of Reason"
and if had read it. | said l had not
read it, whereupon he said he would
read the New Testament if l would
read the Age of Reason" to which |
at once agreed, though he had the best
bargain, and l did so. | did not like it
much, and would not advise any person
to read it. asked Mr.. Bell to come to
church, but he said they were all hypo-
/ n,.,tn tlnt To oh trTh tU hn
would do, however: | might come to
his house, if l liked, and preach.
Here in this saloon?" eyes! but
look here, you are not to do all the talk
ing" he said that he and his friends
would have their say as well as l, l
agreed that they might have the first
forty-fve minutes and l the last fifteen
of the hour, which he thought fair, and
that was settled. The day came, and
went to keep my appointment, but |
never in all my life met such crowd
as when, on the day appointed, l went
to that saloon; such collection of in
fidels, deists, reprobates of all kinds |
never saw before. Their oaths and
language were horrible. Some of them
seemed as if they had come on leave
of absence from the pit. never was
so near hell before. They began to
talk in the most blasphemous way.
Some thought one thing, some another;
some believed there was a God, others
not; some thought there was such a
man as Jesus Christ, others that there
never was, some didn't believe any,
thing. They couldn't agree, contra
dicted each other, and very nearly
came to fighting with one another be-
fore the time had expired. / had
brought down little boy, an orphan
with me, and when 1 saw and heard
such blasphemy thought l had done
wrong to bring him there. When their
time was up said that we Christians
always began service with prayer to
God. Hold,n said they, " two must
be agreed first" "Well, here are two
of u.s." And so l prayed, and the
little boy did so. l never heard a
prayer like that in all my life. 1t
seemed as if God was speaking through
that little boy. With tears running
down his cheeks he besought God, for
Christ's sake, to take pity on all these
poor men, and that went to their very
hearts. heard sobs throughout the
hall, and one infidel went out at this
door and another at that; and then Mr..
Bell came up to me and said: You
can have my children, Mr.. Moody"
And the best friend that l have in
Chicago to-day is that same Joshua
Bell, and his son has come out for
Christ and is worker for him. Chris
tidn Statesman.